Morning Yoga and Conversation
by AdmHawthorne
Summary: Maura and Jane talk about a few things before their morning workout. Rizzles implied. One shot  for real .


**Points to you if you find the tweet in the story that was the inspiration for it.  
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**_One shot_  
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**As usual, the character's aren't mine. I'm just borrowing them.**

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"That yoga class was one of my favorites, and it is your fault we were asked not to return. As such, I feel you owe me." Maura rolled out her yoga mat on the floor of her living room. "My good name within the yoga community has been tarnished. Until such time as your little incident can be forgiven, we'll have to make do, as it were, and practice yoga at home." She stepped onto the mat and waited. "You _will_ be doing these exercises with me, Jane."

The detective grumbled as she followed Maura's lead. "You know, you could just go without me." She gave a heavy sigh as she stepped onto the mat. "It's not like they told _you_ not to come back. They said _we_ couldn't go together anymore."

"Are you ready?" Maura slid down to sit on her knees.

"Oh no, you're going to start with that dog position?" Jane followed the doctor's lead.

"Downward facing dog, and yes." Maura watched Jane intently.

"I guess I should assume the position then?" Jane sighed as she got on all fours.

"I suppose you should." Maura made a move to get into position.

"You know," Jane sat back up, "I really hate this. I mean, why am I _doing_ this when I could be doing something I actually _like_, like basketball or softball? Stuff like that."

"Every time you engage in physical activities such as those you've listed, you come back with contusions, breaks, and other assorted injuries. Yoga is a much safer alternative." The doctor moved to a cross-legged position on the mat facing the now reclining Jane. "In addition, yoga is an excellent way to relieve stress and focus one's mind."

"I don't _need_ to focus my mind, alright? It's focused enough." The brunette leaned back to stare at the ceiling.

"On what, may I ask?"

"Well, you know, on work and," Jane made a face. "Stuff, okay?"

"Jane, it's been proven through various research methods that meditation and controlled physical activity can help reduce stress, which, in turn, can lead to a longer and healthier life."

"Sex will do the same thing, and it's a lot more fun," Jane muttered as she rolled her eyes.

"Are you engaged in regular sexual activities that I am unaware of?"

The brunette's head shot to the side to look the doctor in the eye, "Excuse me?"

"It's a simple question, Jane. If you _are_ engaged in a regular physical activity, and sex does count, then I would be less inclined to encourage you to accompany me as I go through my yoga routines. I'm simply looking out for your health."

"Okay, first of all," Jane sat up to face the doctor, "You may be my best friend, but I don't think it's any of your business how often I have sex. Second of all," she pulled her knees to her chest and slammed her forehead down on top of them, "I'm in a dry spell."

"Ah, well, you know Jorge…"

"No."

"But, Jane, he's really very sweet, and, if you'd just give him a chance, I'm sure…"

"No, Maura, I mean it. Besides," She raised her head, giving the blonde a hard look, "_You_ told him I was a lesbian, remember?"

"I did not. As I said before, he _assumed_, and I didn't correct his assumption."

"Right," the brunette sighed. "You know what I need?" Maura cocked her head to the side. "I need a friend with benefits."

"I don't think I know what that means."

"You know, someone I'm not really in a relationship with (and probably don't want to be), but we get together on a fairly regular basis to… relieve some stress." Jane shrugged. She tried to keep the blush from rising up her neck.

"Interesting. You know, from an anthropological perspective," Jane held her hand up, and Maura stopped talking.

"Yeah, let's not do the google talk thing on that one, okay?"

"Male or female?"

Jane stared at Maura for a moment as she tried to follow the jump. "Huh?"

"Your 'friend with benefits', do you have a preference on their gender since you would have no interest in a personal relationship with them outside of the physical?" Maura gave a small grin.

"Wow," Jane ran her hand nervously over her ponytail. "I can't believe… Maura, you know I'm straight."

"Actually, I know you have a preference for men in terms of a long-term, committed relationship. However, it is not unheard of for an individual to have relations with the same sex prior to entering into a long-term relationship with the opposite sex."

"Okay," the detective blew out a stream of air as she tried to follow what the blonde was saying. "Are you asking me if I'm attracted to women?"

Maura thought on it for a moment. "Yes, I believe I am."

"I can't believe you're asking me that. I mean, come on Maura, haven't we known each other long enough for you to know?"

"There are some things we don't discuss. This is, usually, one of them. For example, do you know what my preferences are?"

"You like guys, too. You even said that one time, 'I wonder what kind of women we'd like if we liked women'? You don't have be a detective to be able to figure out that means you _don't_ like women _like that_."

"Actually, what I said indicates that, out of the two of us, at least one of us is not sexually attracted to women."

Jane could feel the dumbfounded look cross her face. "Wait a minute, are you telling me you _are_ attracted to women?"

"I believe that sexuality is not absolute, and it's difficult to say who one might ultimately find one's self attracted to. As such, I can't really give you a definitive answer on my absolute attraction to men versus women."

Jane chuckled, "You love who you love, huh?"

"I suppose that is one way of phrasing it, yes."

The brunette considered the woman sitting across from her. "Is there anyone we know you'd consider dating?"

Maura scrunched her nose up for a moment. "Yes, but I believe the feelings are not mutual."

The mischievous smile Jane often had when teasing Maura quickly appeared on the detective's face. "Is it a guy or a girl?"

Maura shifted uncomfortably. "A woman."

Jane's eyebrows shot up. "Really? Do I know her?"

"Yes." Maura stood up. "Jane, I don't really want to discuss this. Can we talk about something else? Or, perhaps we could actually go through the yoga exercises as we had planned?"

"No way," Jane hopped up, "This is a lot more fun." Her grin widened. "Who is she? Come on, tell me, Maura."

"No, Jane." Maura emphatically shook her head. "I mean it. Can we just drop this topic?"

Jane's face fell. "Hey, I didn't mean to make you angry." She placed a hand on the other woman's arm. "I was just teasing you a little."

"I know," Maura placed her hand on top of Jane's, "I just don't want to talk about this. I find it difficult to process, and I am much more comfortable not directly addressing the situation."

"Because it's another woman?"

Maura patted Jane's hand. "No, because of who it is. If she were to know," the blonde shook her head, "I believe the results would be disastrous." She gave the brunette a small smile. "Perhaps yoga wasn't such a good idea. Let's change and go out for breakfast instead?" She pulled away from Jane's touch and walked toward her bedroom.

Jane stood in the middle of the living room floor thinking on who the woman was. It didn't take long.

"_Shit," _she mumbled to herself.

In the quiet of the house, Jane felt the all-consuming pressure to make a decision. Did she address what she had just figured out, or did she leave everything as it was and continue on as if she knew nothing? Did she want to change the nature of her relationship with the woman in the other room? Was she ready to deal with the concept of changing, no, of accepting that she was fundamentally different than she often claimed to be?

It was a hard call to make.

Maura had clearly left this ball in her court. Jane wasn't sure she was happy with that fact. For the longest time, she had let the ball sit in the middle of the court. She would have happily left it there, and she knew it was her fault that the it was now in play. If she had left well enough alone, she wouldn't be standing in the silence holding this proverbial ball.

"Jane, why aren't you dressed?" Maura stepped out of her room dressed in a pair of jeans and a designer top. Her matching heels gave her an additional four inches of height forcing Jane to look up to meet her eyes. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I," she ran her hand across the back of her neck. "I'm sorry, I guess I got distracted. I'll go change." She turned in the direction of the guest room, but stopped short at the edge of the sofa. Slowly, she turned back to the blonde behind her. "Maura," she tentatively headed back toward the other woman. "Maybe you should talk to the woman? If you never talk to her, how will you know if you have a chance?"

"Jane…"

"Hear me out." Jane stared at the floor. "Look, not everyone is as… comfortable …with who they are actually attracted to as you are. I mean, look at all those people that live in the closet for decades. So, maybe, if you just _talked_ to her to let her know, you might find out she's not as opposed to the idea as you think," she looked the blonde in the eye, "How can you make a decision on something without having all the facts?"

Maura frowned, looking away from the intensity in Jane's eyes. "You know."

"I only know what you tell me. Otherwise, I'm just speculating. Isn't that what you always tell me?"

"You _do_ listen to me."

"Of course I do." Jane gave a reassuring smile.

"I sometimes wonder," Maura closed her eyes and inhaled slowly. "Jane, I think… I think I would like to go to breakfast."

Jane nodded, mostly to herself. "Okay, let me just go get changed." She was stopped by a hand on her wrist.

"Would you go out with me tonight?" Maura held her breath.

"Out how?" Jane was staring at her captured wrist.

"How would you prefer?" The uncertainty in Maura's voice made Jane flinch.

"I'm going to go home now," the brunette looked up into the crestfallen face of the blonde. "What time will you pick me up, and how should I dress?"

"You… I," Maura blinked, "5? Dress in something nicer than normal. There's a steakhouse I've been wanting to go to for some time now."

"What were you waiting for? Why go now?" The teasing smile slid back onto Jane's face.

"I wanted it to be a special occasion." Maura ventured a small smile. "Is this a special occasion?"

Jane gently pulled away and gathered her things. As she walked to the door, she called out over her shoulder, "First dates normally are. I'll see you at 5, Maura."

Maura let out a breath of relief. Once again, Jane Rizzoli had surprised her. Though never a bad thing, she did sometimes wish she was better prepared. She smiled to herself. She had much to prepare for tonight.


End file.
